he time leading up to a trip, a big trip, the weeks and months are often more exciting than actually starting the trip. Surely more exciting than the final days of travel when you may be worn down when your fantasies include being back in your bed, your comfortable life, family, friends – at least a little.
At first, the trip seems impossibly far away, then it rushes up on you, four weeks, two, then you’re on the plane, what happened?
Don’t buy into the hype
Planning a trip is exciting because you can visualize it, scan through all the things you can do, create your itinerary. That tedious time that seems like it stretches forever you start to think about everything you might need. Amazon and other travel shops offer up so much travel-candy, It’s easy to get sucked into buying new gear for your travels, the gear you probably don’t need and that you end up lugging around.
There’s no end to what you can buy; medical kits, travel umbrellas, underwater phone cases, fancy camera accessories, guidebooks, sleep masks, new clothes, scarves, bathing suits, boots, passport covers, travel bags, laundry bags, lip balm, sunscreen, luggage tags, money belts, sewing kits, water bottles, hotel door alarms, going out clothes, books, designer travel kits.
Packing light is right!
For me, the less I pack the better. I travel with just a simple Rimowa carry-on rolling case. It fits in the airplane cabin right above my head and dramatically limits what I can pack. You’re probably not traveling to Mars, so there’s 7elevens, drugstores, and shops wherever you’re going. Additionally, it’s easy to find some cool things along the way – if you need them. Nothing beats cruising down the aisles of a foreign drugstore looking at all the weird things. Tshirts with slogans from each city, cheap shoes and towels can be bought and donated and discarded, sunscreen is available everywhere. Of course, sometimes it’s at a slightly higher price. But there’s a price to lugging that all around too.
The less you have the easier it is for you to go and keep going. The more you have the harder. You’re weighed down, you’re fighting cobblestone streets, heaving your bags up into trains, the back of taxis, up flights of steep steps, through the sand at the beach. More to wash and pack.
When I was in St.Moritz a Singapore girl managed to get on the train was on, carrying two huge cases, and two slightly smaller ones. She was struggling and I just couldn’t imagine how she manages a comfortable trip around Switzerland hauling all that stuff. If you find something you want while on the road you can always just mail it home.
Of course, I do have a few favorite things I carry with me, and I keep a list in a spreadsheet I check off before each trip. Limiting the size of your suitcase ensures you just can’t pick up too much stuff along the road. Or if you do, you have to carefully decide what to leave behind.
So, what do I pack?
As far as packing clothes, packing mix-and-match outfits, tops you can pair with different pants, some comfortable jeans, and only one or two nightlife outfits. After all, you’re surrounded by strangers and you’ll probably only be going to a specific club or bar one time in each city (too many places to try) – so there’s no reason to pack more than two fancy outfits. Clothes that can be easily washed in your hotel sink, little packets of single-use Woolite or Tide packets and a universal sink plug. A pair of walking shoes, and some nice flats you can wear for dressier occasions. You don’t need much.
As weird as it sounds – If you bring just enough clothes for 5 days then you have enough for 3 months. Just wash and recycle. So much of the travel industry is built on selling travelers things they don’t need, or overpriced stuff that under delivers. Being able to step off the plane and into the taxi instead of waiting for your luggage, not working about losing it, and not wearing yourself out lugging around makes a much easier, fun and lighter trip.
